Bulldogs’ Nuthall tabbed KCAC MVP

Thursday

Nov 14, 2013 at 4:01 PM

The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference announced the 2013 Men's Soccer All-Conference teams and individual award winners Wednesday, and McPherson College’s Johnny Nuthall was at the top of the heap.

By MC and BCSports Information

The Kansas Collegiate Athletic Conference announced the 2013 Men's Soccer All-Conference teams and individual award winners Wednesday, and McPherson College’s Johnny Nuthall was at the top of the heap.Nuthall claimed not only Offensive-Player-of-the-Year honors but also the KCAC's Most Valuable Player. Nuthall is the conference leader in points (33), goals (15), goals per game (0.88), total shots (77), and shots per game (4.53); he also ranks third in shots on frame per contest (2.29) and game winning goals (3). The senior captain came to Mac a year ago after time spent at Bethany College.The Nevada native was named KCAC Freshman of the Year following his first year at BC. He has accumulated 48 total goals and 17 assists in his four collegiate seasons. Nuthall is already all over the McPherson record books and continues to make his mark with each game; he was named a NAIA All-American in 2012.Six other Bulldogs received recognition for their performances throughout the 2013 season, while six Bethany College players were honored.For McPherson, Oscar Cortez and Rafael Fuentes join Nuthall on the first team, Taylor Parrott was named to the second team while Nick Torres, Octavio Villa and Danny Calleja make the honorable mention squad.The seven All-KCAC athletes are the second highest for McPherson College. The 2009 championship season brought in eight all-conference honors.Cortez has played in 53 career games for the Bulldogs, tallying ten goals and 13 assists for 33 points. The junior is MC's field general, controlling the game from his midfield position. He has taken 48 shots this year, second on the team, and placed 21 on target for a 43.8 attempts to shots on goal percentage.Fuentes is a transfer and two-year starter for Mac. He plays the outside back position and has four assists and two goals to his name in 34 matches. The senior is a constant threat out of his defensive position and has logged a team-second best 1299 minutes played this year.Parrott made his way to McPherson after playing for Northern Oklahoma College. The senior transfer has started 16 games in goal for the Bulldogs, recording eight wins and six losses while netting 61 saves and three shutouts.The three that made honorable mention are all new to the Mac men's soccer family. Torres, a McPherson High School product, is a freshman forward that has three goals and two assists in his 17 contests. Villa, a transfer from Neosho County CC, came on strong for MC down the stretch, scoring all six of his goals in the final half of the season. Transfer athlete Calleja is the team leader in minutes with 1334 from his defensive position; he has one goal and three assists this year.Bethany senior Lewis Collins, Fulham, England, was named 1st Team All-Conference. Collins, who was also a 2nd Team All-Conference selection in 2012, led the Swedes this season in both goals, 11, and assists, six, totaling 28 points. He recorded 64 shots and 42 shots on goal."I have been fortunate to work with Lewis for three of his four years in college," Swede coach Kevin Megli said. "I have been able to watch him grow as a person and as a player. His maturity and leadership will be hard to replace."Three Swedes players earned 2nd Team All-Conference honors in junior Angel Figueroa, junior Lucas Procopio, and sophomore Luis Fernando, Natal, Brazil.Bethany junior Braeden DeLong and sophomore Angelo Alessi were both named Honorable Mention All-Conference Swede .The Swedes finished fourth in the KCAC with a conference record of 4-2-3, and are 9-4-4 overall."I am very pleased with the performance of the team as a whole this season," said Megli. "Even though these individuals are getting honored, I feel like it has been a team effort. With five out of the six All-Conference players returning next season, I am confident that we will be competitive not just in the KCAC, but in the nation real soon."The Bulldogs, meanwhile, are scheduled to play Tabor College in the quarterfinals of the KCAC Championships after a week’s rest. The match is set for Friday at 1:30 p.m. on the fields at Hummer Sports Park in Topeka, Kansas.

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